In a towering, dusty gothic library, a very tall, lanky Warforged (Gordian), with a plated steel-and-wood body and a single glowing visor slit, deadpan as ever, holds up a tiny caltrop that glows white-hot. A rolling ball of fire smashes into a stone wall with a giant "KA-BOOM!", scattering books and pages everywhere. His tiny clockwork hummingbird (Blink) zips through the smoke. A prim, furious old librarian with a bun and spectacles shrieks, steam coming out of her ears, while a green-blue dragonborn (Kiet) sheepishly presses a pile of gold coins into her hands. A tiny kobold paladin (Haru), an enormous scarred warrior (Gemnar, silver gauntlet with 7 red stones), and a large, gentle firbolg druid (Toven) with a small grey rat (12) on his shoulder look on, half impressed, half wincing.
Morning, in a sunny road camp. A very tall, lanky Warforged (Gordian, glowing visor slit) rolls four big glowing dice in his palm, and four bubbling potion vials pop out of thin air above them, each a different color. A green-blue dragonborn (Kiet) gulps a bright yellow one and blurs into a cartoon speed streak with "ZOOM!" An enormous scarred warrior (Gemnar, silver gauntlet with 7 red stones) drinks a blue one and glows with a shimmering shield outline. A tiny kobold paladin (Haru) sniffs a green one suspiciously. A tiny clockwork hummingbird (Blink) carries the last vial like a delivery bird.
At the glowing gemstone gateway of a Concord Jewel on the edge of the Radiant Citadel, a long line of worried citizens with suitcases and carts streams out of the city, while nobody comes in. A suspicious guard in gold-and-white armor with a tall shield blocks the party, poking a tiny kobold paladin (Haru) in the chest and yelling "YOU'RE AN ILLUSION!" Haru stands on tiptoe, wagging a finger, mid-explanation, with a thought bubble showing a gleaming sword being handed to a stern commander. Behind him, a green-blue dragonborn (Kiet), an enormous scarred warrior (Gemnar, silver gauntlet with 7 red stones), a large, gentle firbolg druid (Toven) with a grey rat (12) on his shoulder, and a very tall, lanky Warforged (Gordian, glowing visor slit) wait awkwardly. A giant pale-blue crystal shard towers over the city in the background.
A war room in the Shieldbearers' headquarters. A stern, battle-worn commander in decorated gold-and-white armor (Commissar Lee) leans over a big table map of the Radiant Citadel, pointing at the giant crystal shard. Below it on the map, dozens of little cartoon ghoul figurines are camped in a cave. Along the wall, racks of brand-new muskets and swords crackling with blue electricity. Through the window, the city streets are full of see-through, flickering illusion people pretending to stroll, shop and wave. A tiny kobold paladin (Haru), a green-blue dragonborn (Kiet), an enormous scarred warrior (Gemnar, silver gauntlet with 7 red stones), a large, gentle firbolg druid (Toven) with a grey rat (12), and a very tall, lanky Warforged (Gordian, glowing visor slit) gather around the table looking grim.
The barracks of the Bastion, a stone manor. Two gangly teenage hill giants (Thick and Thack), about 12 feet tall in ragged street clothes, refuse to put on armor: one crosses his arms and turns his nose up at a breastplate, and the other wears a helmet upside down like a bucket. A serious crow-headed kenku captain in armor (Steps Without Looking) holds up a clipboard in exasperation. An enormous scarred warrior (Gemnar, silver gauntlet with 7 red stones) stands beside them with his arms folded, beaming with pride like a proud dad.
Inside the Bastion's cluttered alchemy lab, with bubbling flasks, coiling glass tubes and shelves of jars. A very tall, lanky Warforged (Gordian, glowing visor slit) is unpacking his things and making himself at home, already claiming a workbench. In the foreground, a pale, gothic, vampire-like woman in dark robes (Calavera), slumped and gloomy with a little rain cloud over her head, breaks into a surprised smile as a tiny clockwork hummingbird (Blink) hovers in front of her nose doing loop-the-loops, scattering little cartoon hearts and sparkles.
In the Bastion's candlelit temple, a tiny kobold paladin (Haru) proudly presents two large, gleaming silver dragon eggs on a velvet cushion, glowing softly with holy light. A calm, scholarly Warforged with a sleek bronze frame and little reading glasses (Yslana) is already taking notes in a giant book about dragons. A burly, friendly orc stable master in a leather apron (Orbal Houndstooth) holds a measuring tape and a sketch of a cozy dragon nest. A large, gentle firbolg druid (Toven) with a small grey rat (12) on his shoulder looks on warmly.
A big storybook-style vision floating above an open book in a library. In the vision, centuries ago, a smug halfling wizard in starry robes (Kenazaro) fights beside a towering 12-foot radiant angel (Atash) against a huge winged demon lord (Pazuzu) in a storm of light. Then the wizard's ghostly soul splits in two with a magical "SPLIT!": one half swirls into a small ring, and the other into a stone statue standing in a dark hall full of chiseled-out names. In the foreground, a calm bronze Warforged librarian with reading glasses (Yslana) reads aloud, while a green-blue dragonborn (Kiet) stares at the ring on his own hand in horror.
In a serene spa room with bioluminescent plants and a crystal massage table, a blue fish-man massage therapist (Glorb) holds his hands up in confusion, saying "Glorb?" A green-blue dragonborn (Kiet), wrapped in a towel with cucumber slices flying off his eyes, is yanked bodily out the door by his own glowing ringed hand, his legs flailing. A smug translucent halfling wizard ghost (Kenazaro) pops out of the ring, grinning and pointing the way. The hallway beyond leads to a temple door. A tiny kobold paladin (Haru) chases after them, yelling "THAT'S NOT WHAT THE PROMISE MEANT!"
Over the rooftops of the Radiant Citadel in a pastel astral sky, an enormous scarred warrior (Gemnar, glaive raised, silver gauntlet with 7 identical red stones) rides a giant, horse-sized, glossy black fly with buzzing translucent wings, whooping in triumph. The giant pale-blue crystal shard looms behind him. Below, on the Bastion's courtyard lawn, a tiny kobold paladin (Haru), a green-blue dragonborn (Kiet), a large, gentle firbolg druid (Toven) with a small grey rat (12) on his shoulder, and a very tall, lanky Warforged (Gordian, glowing visor slit, his tiny clockwork hummingbird Blink beside him) look up shielding their eyes.